Is the performance and features of entry-level smartphones not enough? Maybe it’s time for you to buy and upgrade to a mid-range smartphone.Â
Most midrange smartphones nowadays already offer high-caliber performance, outstanding cameras, and other flagship killer features that entry-level devices don’t have. There are also low-priced ones, so you really have a lot of choices.Â
Through this article, I will help you choose what I think are the best options in the market.Â
realme 12 Pro+ 5GÂ
Starting with the recently released realme 12 Pro+ 5G, a phone with an extraordinary camera setup that offers one of the best image quality at this price point. It features a 50MP Sony IMX890 OIS main camera, 64MP OmniVision OV64B Periscope lens, 8MP wide-angle lens, and 32MP Sony IMX615 selfie camera.Â
With its periscope lens, you can zoom up to 120x and the image quality is still usable. Actually, we had a photoshoot with realme that is a magazine cover inspired and the output was excellent. You wouldn’t think that it was only captured with a phone.Â
realme 12 Pro+ 5G also highlights 4nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 octa-core processor with Adreno 710, 12GB RAM, and 512GB of internal storage. Besides, it has a large 6.7-inch Curved OLED display with FHD+ resolution, 120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate, 100% DCI-P3, and many more. This device also has a 5,000mAh battery capacity that supports 67W SUPERVOOC charging.Â
realme 12 Pro+ 5G – Shopee link | Lazada linkÂ
You can buy the realme 12 Pro+ 5G in the realme flagship store on Shopee, Lazada, and TikTok Shop for only PHP 25,999.Â
HONOR 90 5GÂ
Next is the HONOR 90 5G, one of the best midrange smartphones of HONOR released last year. This phone also boasts good image quality because of its 200MP main shooter, a 12MP ultra-wide lens, a 2MP depth sensor, and a 50MP selfie camera. It did not feature optical image stabilization but it has electronic image stabilization.Â
The HONOR 90 5G is equipped with Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 Accelerated Edition octa-core chipset with Adreno 644, 12GB RAM, 512GB internal storage, and a 5,000mAh battery capacity that supports 66W HONOR SuperCharge.Â
In addition, this device features a high-quality display since it possesses a large 6.7-inch Quad-Curved Floating Screen that is an AMOLED panel and has a 2664 x 1200 resolution. Its display also supports a 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+, and up to 1,600nits max brightness.Â
HONOR 90 5G – Shopee link | Lazada linkÂ
The HONOR 90 5G is available in HONOR Philippines’ official stores nationwide as well as on their online platforms with a price ranging from PHP 17,990 to PHP 26,990.Â
OPPO Reno11 ProÂ
If you want a very aesthetic-looking phone, OPPO Philippines got you with its latest OPPO Reno11 Pro. The Pearl White colorway of this phone has the most stunning design on our list.Â
Not only does it look good but it also performs well because it has a 4nm MediaTek Dimensity 8200 with a Mali-G610 MC6 GPU that is also accompanied by 12GB LPDDR5X RAM and 512GB UFS3.1 internal storage. It is also powered with a 4,600mAh battery capacity that supports 80W SUPERVOOC charging.
The Reno11 Pro also boasts its ultra-clear portrait camera system that consists of a 50MP main shooter with OIS, an 8MP ultra-wide angle lens, a 32MP telephoto lens, and a 32MP selfie camera.Â
Besides, it has a large 6.7-inch FHD+ resolution OLED display that supports 120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate, 100% DCI-P3 color gamut, and up to 950nits max brightness.Â
OPPO Reno11 Pro – Shopee link | Lazada linkÂ
Get yours now for only PHP 31,999, available in all authorized resellers nationwide and official stores of OPPO Philippines on Shopee, Lazada, and TikTok Shop.Â
POCO X6 ProÂ
I shouldn’t include it in the list because I have been hearing about bootloop issues lately on other POCO devices, but the POCO X6 Pro has very good specifications and features for its price. Just buy it at your own risk.Â
The POCO X6 Pro is very powerful since it is equipped with the 4nm Mediatek Dimensity 8300 Ultra with Mali G615-MC6 GPU. This is paired with up to 12GB LPDDR5X RAM and up to 512GB UFS 4.0 internal storage and supports Memory extension 3.0. With these specs, expect an immersive performance in this device. Besides, it has a 5,000mAh battery capacity that supports 67W turbo charging.Â
One of the things I liked about it is that the quality of its display is very good because it has a 6.67-inch CrystalRes Flow AMOLED DotDisplay that has 1.5K resolution, HDR10+, 120Hz refresh rate, up to 480Hz touch sampling rate, Corning Gorilla Glass 5, and up to 1,800nits maximum brightness.Â
POCO X6 Pro also boasts a 64MP main camera, 8MP ultra-wide lens, 2MP macro lens, and a 16MP selfie camera. Its rear camera setup can shoot up to 4K@30fps, while up to 1080p@60fps only in its front camera.Â
POCO X6 Pro – Shopee link | Lazada linkÂ
You can score POCO X6 Pro in POCO’s official store on Shopee and Lazada with a price starting at PHP 16,999 for the 8GB/256GB variant and PHP 19,999 for the 12GB/512GB variant.Â
realme 12+ 5GÂ
Next on our list is the realme 12+ 5G which we also reviewed recently. The realme 12+ 5G also features an incredible camera, performance, and very stylish design.Â
Starting with its camera, this device features a 50MP Sony LYT-600 OIS main camera, an 8MP wide-angle lens, a 2MP macro lens, and a 16MP selfie camera. The photos that I got here are really good image quality. Some of it has better quality or processing compared to my other high-end phones, and you can see our sample photos and videos in our review article.Â
The performance of this phone is also decent since it has a 6nm MediaTek Dimensity 7050 5G octa-core chipset with Mali-G68 MC4 GPU. It also comes with 8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 256GB internal storage, and a huge 5,000mAh battery capacity that supports 67W SUPERVOOC charging technology.Â
Moreover, the realme 12+ 5G also has a large 6.67-inch display that has 0.68mm secondary tempered high-strength glass protection. Its display also has FHD+ resolution, 120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate, IP54 certification, and up to 2,000nits max brightness. The display feature I like is the Rainwater Smart Touch which improves touch input accuracy when the screen has liquids, rain water, or even wet hands.Â
realme 12+ 5G – Shopee link | Lazada linkÂ
The price of the realme 12+ 5G starts at PHP 17,999 for the 8GB/256GB, while PHP 19,999 for the 12GB/256GB variant. You can now order it in the official stores of realme nationwide as well as on their Shopee and Lazada.Â
HONOR X8bÂ
One of my favorite midrange phones today is the HONOR X8b because of its slim and lightweight design. Even if it’s not very powerful or doesn’t have flagship killer features, it still has features that most of the phones on our list don’t have.Â
Even though it’s quite affordable, the experience here is still premium because it has a 6.7-inch AMOLED display with rounder corners. For me that always hurts my eyes, its 3240Hz high-frequency PWM dimming feature is also a big help.Â
For the camera, it also features a 108MP main shooter, a 5MP ultra-wide lens, a 2MP macro lens, and a 50MP selfie camera. Unfortunately, it doesn’t feature any stabilization, so I cannot recommend it for those who always shoot videos. But for photos, I can say that it already offers decent image quality.Â
This phone features a 6nm Snapdragon 680 octa-core chipset with Adreno 610 GPU. Take note that it only supports 4G connectivity just in case you need 5G. For memory, it has 8GB RAM and a very huge 512GB internal storage which you can use to store plenty of photos or videos. Under the hood, it also has a 4,500mAh battery capacity that supports 35W HONOR SuperCharge.Â
HONOR X8b – Shopee link | Lazada linkÂ
Get HONOR X8b now for only PHP 12,999 in HONOR Philippines’ official stores nationwide and on its Shopee, Lazada, and TikTok Shop.Â
HONOR X9bÂ
The next one is from HONOR Philippines and it’s perfect for you if you think you’re a little clumsy, none other than the HONOR X9b. If you have watched the testing of famous influencers and celebrities, we can say that this phone is durable. But of course, it’s still glass, so there’s still a chance that it will break.Â
It’s not just durability that it’s proud of but its camera as well, consisting of a 108MP main shooter, 5MP ultra-wide lens, 2MP macro lens, and a 16MP selfie camera. This phone also has an outstanding display since it features a large 6.78-inch AMOLED screen that supports 120Hz refresh rate and up to 1,200nits max brightness.Â
HONOR X9b is equipped with a 4nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 chipset with Adreno 710 GPU, 12GB RAM, and 256GB internal storage. It also features a large 5,800mAh battery capacity that supports 35W HONOR SuperCharge.Â
HONOR X9b – Shopee link | Lazada linkÂ
The HONOR X9b is also available in both physical and online stores of HONOR Philippines for only PHP 16,999.Â
Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5GÂ
Next is one of the flagship killers in our list, the Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G from Xiaomi. The highlight of this phone is its camera setup because it has a 200MP main camera, 8MP ultra-wide lens, 2MP macro lens, and 16MP selfie shooter.Â
Another superior feature of this phone is its display that has a 6.67-inch Crystel AMOLED display that supports 12-bit color depth, 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+, 1920Hz PWM dimming, up to 1,800nits max brightness, and has Corning Gorilla Glass Victus.Â
Additionally, this phone features a 4nm MediaTek Dimensity 7200-Ultra with Mal-G610 GPU that can offer powerful performance. It is paired with up to 12GB LPDDR5 RAM, up to 512GB UFS3.1 internal storage, 5,000mAh battery capacity that supports 120W HyperCharge.
Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G – Shopee link
You can buy the Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G in Shopee and Lazada with a price starting at PHP 20,999 for the 8GB/256GB variant, while PHP 23,999 for the 12GB/512GB variant.Â
vivo V30 5GÂ
Now that vivo has released its new V30 series, our list includes the vivo V30 5G. We haven’t tried it yet but based on the reviews I’ve seen and watched, its camera is really good.Â
The vivo V30 5G comes with a 50MP main camera with OIS, a 50MP ultra-wide-angle lens, and a 50MP selfie camera with auto-focus. It also features a large 6.78-inch FHD+ AMOLED display that supports 120Hz refresh rate, 100% DCI-P3 color gamut, 105% NTSC color saturation, and up to 2,800nits max brightness.Â
Expect excellent performance in this phone since it is powered by the 4nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 chipset that is paired with 12GB LPDDR4X RAM and up to 512GB UFS2.2 internal storage. I just hope that vivo uses at least UFS3.0 so that its storage is fast. It also possesses a large 5,000mAh battery capacity that supports 80W fast charging.Â
vivo V30 – Shopee link | Lazada linkÂ
This new vivo V30 is now available in all vivo authorized resellers nationwide as well as in their official store on Shopee and Lazada for only PHP 24,999 for the 12GB/256GB variant, while PHP 27,999 for the 12GB/512GB variant.Â
Nothing Phone (2a)Â
Last but not least is the Nothing Phone (2a) which is the current affordable phone from Nothing. This is one of my favorite new midrange phones released this year because it has a unique design and also has a Glyph interface.Â
By the way, I haven’t reviewed it yet but I tried a demo unit of it when I passed by Digital Walker and I can say it’s pretty good overall.Â
The Nothing Phone (2a) features a 4nm MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Pro octa-core processor with Mali-G610 MC4 GPU. It is paired with up to 12GB RAM and up to 256GB internal storage. This device runs Nothing OS 2.5 based on Android 14 out of the box. Besides, it is powered with a large 5,000mAh battery capacity that supports 45W fast charging.Â
I also tried its camera and I can say that the image quality you can get here is decent. It has a 50MP main camera with OIS and EIS, a 50MP ultra-wide lens, and a 32MP selfie camera.Â
Furthermore, the Nothing Phone (2a) also boasts a large 6.7-inch FHD+ Flexible AMOLED display with 10-bit color depth, 30-120Hz adaptive refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate, 2,160Hz PWM frequency, up to 1,300nits max brightness, and Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection.Â
Nothing Phone (2a) – Shopee link | Lazada linkÂ
You can now buy the Nothing Phone (2a) at Nothing PH’s official store on Shopee and Lazada for only PHP 18,990 for the 8GB/128GB variant, while PHP 20,990 for the 12GB/256GB variant. You can also visit any physical store of Digital Walker because it is also available here.Â
What mid-range phone will you buy?Â
There are so many good midrange smartphones in 2024 that offer stronger performance, beautiful displays, outstanding cameras, and other features that can be considered flagship killers, and what I said above are just a few of them. If you ask me, my top 3 here are Nothing Phone (2a) for the unique design and software support, realme 12 Pro+ 5G for the camera, and HONOR X8b for the lightweight and premium design. But before you buy, I suggest that you first watch reviews from different media whether it’s vlogs or articles so that you can be sure.Â
